Honor Among Us
by Mainecoon
Summary: Basil of Baker Street begins a rather strange case... working for a member of Ratigan's gang!
1. A Chance Meeting

[Note: This takes place about 5 years before the movie. If you're wondering where to find him in the movie, Auburn is the mouse who cries when Bartholomew is eaten. :-P Credit goes to Jenny Stead for naming him, though.]  
  
Chapter 1  
A Chance Meeting  
  
The night smelled of adventure. Basil of Baker Street crept stealthily through the streets of London, every ounce of his being focused on his latest case. Tonight, for once, he was not chasing Ratigan. He was chasing an insane weasel apparently bent on taking over England with some bizarre contraption that demanded silver spoons and a large supply of goose feathers to keep it running.  
  
It was not long before Basil's keen ears picked up the sound of a voice trickling from the shadows of a nearby alley. He followed the mumbling to a place just behind a large crate. Slowly, cautiously, he peeked around the corner.  
  
There, sitting on an empty cigarette box, was none other than Auburn, one of Ratigan's thugs. Basil narrowed his eyes. He could make out little of what the other mouse was saying to himself, but Basil has no doubt it was something of a very sinister nature.  
  
Without warning, he sprung from his hiding place. "Surrender, fiend!" he cried. "You have been caught by Basil of Baker Street!!"  
  
Auburn fell to his knees on the ground instantly, shaking with fear. "Aw, can't a fellow even be miserable in peace?" he whined.   
  
If Basil heard him, he made no sign of it. "All right, you scoundrel," he said coming closer, "What were you doing sneaking about back here? Come on! Confess!"  
Auburn turned and glared at Basil. The detective was shocked to see tears on the mouse's face. "I was jus' sitting here, that's all! Is that against the law too now?!" He hastily wiped the tears from his cheeks with his sleeve. "I got as much right to be here as anybody, don't I?"  
  
Basil nodded, slightly taken aback.   
  
"Well what do you want then?" Auburn demanded. When Basil offered no reply, he climbed back onto the cigarette box. "If you've got nothin' to say, then go away and leave me alone! You've got no right pokin' into my business here!" He turned his back to Basil and buried his face in his hands.   
  
Basil stood there, totally at a loss. Auburn, a well known criminal, was telling the greatest detective in England - maybe the best in the world - to go away and mind his own business! It was utterly unheard of!  
  
"Now see here!" Basil said sharply. "Just who do you think you are to be telling me to… to… um…" Finally, Basil noticed exactly what the problem with this picture was. He stepped even closer to the supposed enemy. "Er… I say, old chap, is something the matter?"  
  
"Do you enjoy making people miserable?" Auburn hissed in a voice he was obviously having great difficulty controlling. "I have enough trouble without you poking your nose about and mucking things up!" When Auburn turned to face him, Basil saw tears in the villain's eyes.  
  
"What kind of trouble, besides the obvious?" Basil asked as he sat on the box beside the distraught mouse.  
  
Auburn sniffed, flattening his ears against his head. "None you can help."  
"Oh?" Basil raised his eyebrows. Auburn crossed his arms and hunched his shoulders over.  
  
"Yeah, oh. Oh yerself, mister fancy detective. Have you ever lived like one of us?"  
  
"Well, no, not exactly," Basil admitted. "But I've…"  
  
"See?" Auburn interrupted. "You have no idea what it's like trying to raise a daughter in this… this…" Stubborn tears spilled down his cheeks. "…this Hell! 'Specially since she's got no mum to look after her proper, or teach her anything she's s'posed to know about being a proper lady… You have no IDEA what that's like!! You know I come home every night afraid she's been eaten by a cat or chased or hurt herself. She's only seven, Mr. Basil. Seven years old. And you know what else? Every night she asks me where her mum is, and I have to tell her that he mum's just gone on a little trip… be back soon as can be… 'cause she… that… damn cat…" He started sobbing.  
  
Basil suddenly saw the city slums in a new light. He put his hand on Auburn's shoulder. "What's the girl's name?" he asked gently.  
  
Auburn pulled his knees up to his chest. "Ginger," he mumbled.   
  
"Does she live near Ratigan's hideout?"  
  
"She lives inside it," Auburn answered hopelessly. Basil furrowed his brows.  
  
"You've got to get her out of there," Basil said, lowering his voice. "There's still a chance for her to grow up without having to sleep with one eye open."  
  
"Oh, really?" Auburn looked at Basil with contempt in his eyes. "If she leaves, I leave with her. And there's no way I can just walk right out without anybody noticing. The boss has informants all over the city. If I'm anywhere in England, he'll know. And he'll find me and that will be the end!" More tears fell as he thought of what dreaded fate might befall him and his child.   
  
"At least… At least get her out of Ratigan's hands. I know places she'll be safe until…"  
  
"Until what? Until you kill the boss and dismember the whole operation! Not bloody likely!"  
  
Basil stood up and planted himself directly in front of Auburn. "Just get her out!" he said. "It doesn't matter how. I won't allow you to let her rot in that sewer! It's my responsibility to protect the innocent citizens of this city, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let a **child** waste away in a den of thieves. Even a child of sinners is innocent until you let her be otherwise."  
  
Auburn looked away. "I can't…" he whispered. "I can't betray…"  
  
"Then DON'T!" Basil yelled. Auburn jumped to his feet, startled. For a long moment, the two mice stared at each other. Finally, Auburn rubbed his sleeve over his eyes and said softly, "Ivy and Port."   
  
With that, he turned and ran, leaving Basil to ponder the mysterious words. As the detective turned to go back to his home, a pair of glittering eyes peered out from behind a garbage can, then disappeared in the opposite direction.  



	2. Ivy and Port

Chapter 2  
Ivy and Port  
  
Basil returned to his flat soaking wet. A heavy rain had started just after Auburn fled into the darkness. Auburn's parting words still echoed in the detective's ears.  
  
"Ivy and Port," Basil muttered, brushing past Mrs. Judson. "Ivy and Port, Ivy and Port…"  
  
Mrs. Judson raised one eyebrow. "Are you feeling quite all right, Mr. Basil?" she asked. Basil paused only a moment to look at her.  
  
"Perfectly fine!" he chirped.   
  
"…Would you care for some tea, sir?"  
  
"No thanks, I'll be out again soon!" Basil called as he busily rummaged through a basket full of rolled-up posters and maps. Finally, he located his London street map and pinned it to the wall. Mrs. Judson shook her head and went back into the kitchen as Basil began to study the map intensely.   
  
A few minutes later, Basil was out the door again, this time dressed as one of Ratigan's thugs. After a quick stop to collect his loyal canine friend Toby, the two of them were off and running towards the river. Using the information gathered from the map, Basil quickly guided his mount to Port street. Basil hopped off and looked around. Toby tilted his head in a questioning manner when Basil got back on.  
  
"Well, old friend," Basil said, "Do you have any idea where there's an Ivy street that connects to Port street?"  
  
Toby barked and started running again. Basil held on tightly to the dog's collar, surprised at the suddenness of the takeoff.   
  
Several blocks down, Toby stopped running. Nose to the ground, he trotted along the side of the street nearest to the river. It was not long before he found what he had been searching for. Basil swung down from Toby's back to take a closer look.  
  
"Ah-HA!" He laughed happily. "Good boy, Toby! No wonder this wasn't on the map…" What Toby had found was not a street, but a sewer grate at the entrance of an alley. A rusted piece of metal attached to the stone street pronounced the grate to be the entrance to "Raven's Roost, Lower Shipping, Ivy, and the Map Room." Basil didn't pause to wonder what the other three names could be. He instructed Toby to stay then scampered down into the grate.  
  
The winding sewer paths below the city were lit with torches. Wherever the way split, the same metal signs told which way led where. It made Basil's job immensely easier. With any luck, Auburn's daughter would be safe sooner than expected.   
  
Basil reached the place leading to Ivy in no time. He turned from the main road and ran down the smaller tunnel. The walls ahead were lined with lights quite unlike the torches that lit the main way. When Basil got closer, he could see that the lights were windows. The bricks in the walls had been cleverly modified to make a long line of flats. Basil marveled at the miniature city that stretched before him. He guessed that there must be more of these occupied tunnels throughout the city. It was no wonder he never caught a criminal at home. Their homes were hidden more cleverly than Ratigan's hideout!   
  
Now Basil began his search for the right flat. A few had names carved on their doors, but not many. Basil's method was primarily to use his sense of smell to locate the correct door. That method, however, proved difficult and time-consuming due to the great variety of smells that would be there even without the rodent inhabitants.   
  
Suddenly, Basil's search was interrupted by a rough voice behind him. "Hey, you!" it growled. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Basil spun around. One of the tunnel's occupants stood at his door, arms crossed. Basil answered him in the same low growl.  
  
"I'm lookin' fer a friend o' mine," he said. "Name's Auburn. Tol' me to meet 'im here."  
  
The other mouse pointed down the tunnel. "Three more flats to number 16," he said, then slammed his door. Basil turned and scampered hastily to the indicated door and knocked on it. A few moments later, the mail slot clicked open and two suspicious eyes peered out. Basil jumped back, startled.  
  
"What do you want?" said a muffled voice behind the door.  
  
"I'm lookin' for Auburn," Basil answered.  
  
"He already left," the owner of the eyes snapped.   
  
"Are you Ginger?" Basil asked quickly as the mail slot was closing. The eyes glared back.  
  
"What's it to you?"  
  
"Your father sent me to get you."  
  
"Prove it."  
  
Basil sighed and took out his gold pocket watch. He handed it to the girl through the mail slot. "Here. You can keep that until you see your father again. If I'm lying, you can do whatever you want with it."  
  
The eyes glared out a moment more before disappearing into the house. Basil heard the sound of a latch being undone and the door creaked open.  
  
Ginger stood in the doorway with a sack slung over her shoulder. Basil noticed how fitting the girl's name was, for her fur was as ginger as anything. She was small for her age, undoubtedly underfed, and dressed in what looked like badly hemmed clothing that once belonged to Auburn. Her sandals were made from wood and string. To top the whole tom-boy image off, she also wore her father's blue cap, turned backwards to keep it from falling over her eyes.  
  
"I'm ready," she said.   
  
"For what?" Basil looked confused.  
  
"To go. Papa said somebody might show up and I should go with him if he does."  
"And you're packed?" Basil could hardly believe his job was going to be this easy.  
  
Ginger nodded. "I've got everything. Oh! Except this…" She ran off into another room, returning only seconds later with a tiny box in her hands. She put the box gently into her sack and tied the top shut. "Ready?" she asked, looking up at Basil.  
  
"Certainly. Can I carry that sack for you?"  
  
Ginger's eyes narrowed in suspicion once more. "Well…"  
  
"Oh, come on! It's too big for you. Either I carry the bag or I carry you both. We've got to get moving."  
  
The girl grinned. "I was only testing you to see if you're a real gentleman. Papa said you were." She handed her sack to Basil. "Be real careful with it!"  
  
"No worries, my dear. Now, let's go."  
  
Once Ginger figured out which way out they were going, she led the way in a quick race and beat Basil to the exit. Slightly annoyed, Basil lifted her out onto the wet street only to have her leap back into the grate the moment she sighted Toby.  
  
"What on earth is the matter?" Basil asked the terrified child.  
  
"There's a **dog** out there!!" she squealed. "A real, live, fang-toothed **dog**!!!!"  
  
Basil sighed. "Yes, his name is Toby. We're going to ride him back to my flat."  
  
"We are?"   
  
Basil nodded.  
  
"It's quite safe then?"  
  
Basil nodded again.  
  
"I **knew** that. I was only testing to see if you were a real gentleman." She scrambled out of the grate and climbed onto Toby's back. Basil followed, and they rode home as the sun rose over the city.  



	3. My Worthy Foe

[Note: the lullabye is "Cody's Song" by Kenny Loggins.]  
  
Chapter 3  
My Worthy Foe  
  
Ginger refused to go to sleep until she had given Basil's flat a thorough exploration. By the time Mrs. Judson managed to get her to lie down in a spare room, it was almost 1:00 in the afternoon.   
  
"I should have known she'd be nocturnal," Basil grumbled as he collapsed, exhausted, into his chair. "After all, when else but at night would a thief be awake to do anything…?" He drifted into a deep sleep, curled up on the chair. Mrs. Judson tucked a blanket around him before retiring to her own quarters.  
  
***  
  
When Basil awoke, the sun had already set. He glanced at the clock sitting over the fireplace. It was nearly 8:00 at night. He yawned. These night-time cases were going to seriously mess up his internal clock.   
  
Suddenly, strange music drifted to Basil's ears through the quiet apartment. It was coming from Ginger's room. The door was cracked open, so Basil was able to peer in without making a sound.  
  
He saw Ginger sitting in the middle of the floor. The contents of her sack were strewn about in what was obviously a child's rendition of an organized way. In her hands, Ginger held the box she had grabbed just before running out with Basil. It was a music box. The child wound it up and set it on the floor. A beautiful, haunting melody rose from the obviously aged instrument. Ginger began to sing along with it very quietly. Basil had to strain his ears to hear her.  
  
When you feel afraid,  
When you lose your way, I'll find you,  
Just try to smile, and dry your eyes,  
I will bring back the moon into your skies.  
And ever you will, remember darling, I'll be there to  
Sing to you  
I promise you  
I promise to  
Comfort you and sing to you  
Darling, I'll be there just for you.  
  
There's so much to learn,  
And when you want me  
Then I'll show you,  
And through the years,  
You'll always be  
The lullaby in the heart of the child in me.  
Whenever you will, remember, darling, I'll be there to…  
  
  
Ginger's song was interrupted by a harsh knock on the window in Basil's study. Basil ran to the window and pulled the shades back. Auburn was perched on the ledge looking rather cross. Basil undid the lock, and the window swung open. Auburn toppled inside with a squeak of surprise.  
  
"You could have used the door," Basil pointed out. Auburn jumped to his feet.  
  
"Oh… yeah, I guess. Where's Ginger?"  
  
"She's…" Basil was cut off by the sound of a window shattering and a scream. He ran to Ginger's room with Auburn close at his heels. They arrived just in time to see a dark figure disappear into a bush across the street.   
  
"DAMN!!" Auburn snarled. "He found out!!"   
  
"Who?" Basil shouted as Auburn leaped out of the smashed window.   
  
"The boss! Who else?! Come on! I know where he's taking her."  
  
"Wait! Why should I follow you? For all I know, you could be leading me into a trap!"  
  
Auburn turned to Basil, his eyes narrowed in anger and brimming with tears. "Then don't follow! It's none of your business anyway, is it? You can stay here and shred your ears for all I care! But she's my daughter and I'm going to save her!!!" He started running.  
  
Basil had no choice but to follow his enemy out of the window. He knew it could be a trap, but a child in need of rescuing was a child in need of rescuing, even if it was the daughter of a known criminal.   
  
Basil followed Auburn into the sewer and through the labyrinth of tunnels that led them eventually back to Ratigan's lair. The two mice crept cautiously into the open courtyard in front of Ratigan's lavish hideout. There was not a soul to be seen. It didn't take them long to decide everyone must have been inside taking part in one of the boss's musical numbers.   
  
"We'd better go around the back," Auburn whispered. Basil nodded, and the two of them crept around the back of the hideout.  
  
The moment they entered by way of the kitchen door, they realized something was terribly wrong. The kitchen was dark. The only light visible shone from the other side of the double doors leading to the main hall. To make matters stranger, there was not a sound to be heard inside the hall, which had been filled with music only minutes before. Basil and Auburn went to the doors. It was now or never. Basil looked at his companion and nodded. They pushed the doors open together.  
  
A room full of grinning but unsure faces stared back at them. Ratigan was perched on a throne at the head of the room, watching Basil and Auburn with eyes that burned with unrepentant evil. He snapped his fingers and more thugs jumped out from hiding in the kitchen, blocking the exit. Ratigan stood and sauntered to the two mice.  
  
"Auburn!" he said happily, "A perfect job! Very well done. You shall not go unrewarded." He shoved the speechless Auburn aside and grinned down at Basil, who was also speechless, but for quite a different reason than Auburn.  
  
"You… you…" he sputtered angrily.  
  
"No words! No words, my worthy foe! Parting is such sweet sorrow. Take him away." Ratigan laughed as Basil was seized by a group of Ratigan's strongest mice and dragged off.  



	4. Fool's Gold

Chapter 4  
Fool's Gold  
  
"Well, Auburn," Ratigan hissed after Basil had been removed and the rest of his gang returned their attention to their leader. "How did you like my little plan, hmm?"  
  
"It… It was very clever, boss. Genius, I'd call it. Wonderful job of thinking ahead. Why I never would have…"  
  
"Shut up!"   
  
Auburn obeyed immediately.   
  
"Now, I suppose you're wondering what I've done with your little sun spot, aren't you?" Ratigan paused to enjoy the look of immense concern that spread over Auburn's face. "She's safe," he continued. Auburn sighed in relief. "But you'll have to prove your loyalty to me before you see her again."  
  
"But boss! You know I've always been loyal to you!"  
  
"Oh Auburn…. Dear Auburn… Of **course** I know that. But you were doing business with the enemy, weren't you?"  
  
"Only to bring him here, boss! I delivered him right to your door, didn't I?"  
  
Ratigan lit a cigarette, smiling slightly. "That you did, Auburn. That is why I am not punishing you for dealing with that scum in the first place. But you still have to prove your complete loyalty to me."  
  
Auburn bit his lip nervously. "And… and you won't hurt her?"  
  
Ratigan raised a clawed hand. "I swear that not a fur on her precious body will be harmed as long as you do not fail me. I may be a criminal, Auburn, but I do not toy with the lives of those who help me."  
  
Auburn nodded glumly. "What do you want me to do?"  
  
***  
  
Several hours went by and Basil found no way to escape the dank cell he was roughly shoved into. The walls were cement. The windows were barred, and the bars were thick iron. He would simply have to wait for whatever fate Ratigan had in store for him.  
  
He didn't have long to wait after deciding to give himself up to destiny. The sound of clinking keys and an approaching light announced the approach of one of Ratigan's thugs.   
  
"I'm warning you," Basil said as he heard the mouse in the hallway fighting with the lock, "I won't give up without a good fight!"  
  
"I'll try to remember that," answered a very grouchy voice from the other side of the door.  
  
"Auburn? Is that you?" Basil stood up, his hands in tight fists. "Come to take the prisoner to be executed, have you?"  
  
The lock clicked and the door swung open. Auburn stood there with a lantern and a ring of keys. "Come off it, you fop. I've come to get you out of here."   
  
"A fop am I?? I'll show you foppery, you crawling worm…" Auburn ducked just in time, and Basil went flying over him and into the wall. Auburn turned around and glared at him.  
  
"Are you through being stupid yet?" he asked. Basil stood up, rubbing his head where he had hit the cement.  
  
"Yes." He winced at the pain that seemed to cover about half of his body.   
  
"Good. I know where they've got my daughter. If you'll stop leaping into walls, perhaps we can get going and save her."  
  
Basil grumbled as Auburn turned and set a fast pace down the hall. The detective followed, now quite a bit less trusting than he had been at the start of their partnership.   
  
***  
  
Ginger sat huddled in a cold cell very similar to the one Basil had been unceremoniously deposited in several hours earlier. Ears back and arms around her bent knees, she would have been a striking image of her father if not for her small nose and tufted tail. She almost seemed to be sleeping, but as soon as she heard footsteps in the hallway, she leaped to her feet. When Ratigan opened the door, he found her standing with balled fists, ready to fight.  
  
"Well, how are you doing, my dear?" Ratigan purred. Ginger backed into the corner.  
  
"I'm just f-fine," she stuttered through chattering teeth.   
  
"There's no reason to be frightened, my pet," Ratigan said soothingly. "I've come to apologize. I didn't mean for these imbeciles to put you in such a horrible place as this. It won't happen again, Will it?" Ratigan turned and snarled at two cowering thugs who had followed him into the cell. They shook their heads earnestly. "Good. Now come, my dear. It's far too cold for a child down here."  
  
"I'm used t-to it," Ginger assured him. "It's always this c-cold at home."   
  
Ratigan clicked his tongue. "That won't do at all! Your father wouldn't like you to be sitting down in a cold, wet cell, would he? Come. Perhaps we can also find you some finer clothing. It will please your father to see you happy when he returns."  
  
Reluctantly the youngster followed, making it quite clear to Ratigan that she did so only for her father's sake. Ratigan only smiled sweetly and turned to lead the way.  
  
***  
  
"All right, enough! I won't walk a step further until you tell me what this is about!" Basil sat down in the sewer pipe and crossed his arms. They had been walking for close to an hour, and Auburn had offered no explanation. In fact, he hadn't said a thing since they left Ratigan's dungeon.   
  
Auburn stopped walking. He sighed heavily, putting the lantern down in the middle of the pipe. When he turned, he was holding a gun in his shaking hands. Basil's eyes widened in sudden fear.  
  
"I didn't want to have to do this," Auburn said, almost whispering. "But Ratigan promised to return Ginger if…" He didn't need to finish.   
  
There was nothing Basil could do but watch helplessly as Auburn raised the gun, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.  



	5. Lace and Red Curtains

  
  
  
Chapter 5  
Lace and Red Curtains  
  
The sound of the gun shot echoed through the pipe. Basil opened his eyes, his breath coming in short gasps. The first thing he saw was a shining nick in the metal where the bullet had hit… on the roof of the tunnel. He tore his eyes from the heavens and looked down the pipe.   
  
The force of the shot had knocked Auburn to his knees. He sat there, motionless as a statue, with the smoking gun still pointed far above Basil's head. Their eyes met, and words became meaningless. For what seemed like ages, neither moved. Not even a blink of an eye interrupted their silent mirroring of shock. Then finally, so slowly it might have been painful, a sad smile crept onto Basil's face.  
  
"You…" he began quietly. Still words would not come that could express what he meant to say.  
  
But the spell was broken. The gun clanged to the floor. Auburn buried his face in his hands and began to cry.   
  
Basil blinked back his own tears. He had seen death before, but never had it come so close, or let him go so purposefully. With some difficulty he stood, surprised at how weak his legs felt under him. He went to Auburn and kicked the gun away.   
  
"Why didn't you kill me?" he asked. Auburn didn't even look up. "You could have been a hero," Basil continued. "You could have had your daughter back, probably had Ratigan providing for you both until Ginger's children hold their own babes in their arms." Basil paused, realizing how much his voice seemed to mock his enemy. It startled him. "You don't know where she is, do you?"   
  
Auburn shook his head. "He said he wouldn't hurt her… said he'd return her… All I'd have to do was… was…" He nodded towards the gun. "I've never killed anyone before," he whispered.  
  
"It's not as easy as it looks, is it?" Basil sat down in front of Auburn, who had taken a sudden interest in twisting his handkerchief into a tight knot.  
  
"If the boss finds out, I'm a dead mouse!" Auburn cried. "Or worse! Ginger's doomed for sure!"   
  
For several minutes, they sat together in near silence. The only sound in the tunnel was Auburn's stifled sobs and an occasional spark from the lantern's flame. Finally, Basil spoke.  
  
"There is a way to save her still…"  
  
Auburn looked up. "How?" he sniffed.   
  
Basil grinned. "Why, by finding ourselves a dead man."   
  
**  
  
When Auburn stepped into the large open room, a cheer went up from the members of Ratigan's gang. Auburn approached his leader, who was seated on a throne at one end of the room.   
  
"Well?" Ratigan said expectantly. Auburn held out a box. Ratigan took it, confused, and opened it. A grin spread over his face when he saw the contents.  
  
"You have done well, my loyal friend," he said. Then he stood and held up the contents of the box for all to see. A soft murmur of hushed voices sailed through the crowd as they gazed upon the bloodstained hat and coat, both unmistakably Basil's. A new cheer went up, far louder than the first. When the room had quieted once more, Ratigan put the coat and hat back into the box and smiled at Auburn. "And now, I shall honor my end of the deal," he said. "Douglas! Alfred! Take him to the girl."  
  
The two growling thugs who had taken Basil to his cell earlier now grabbed Auburn and dragged him away. Auburn knew better than to protest. This was fortunate, for if he had made a fuss, Douglas and Alfred would have followed previously given instructions from their leader and dragged him to Felicia rather than to Ratigan's personal rooms.   
  
Once among the hallways normally kept locked and guarded against intrusion from the gang members, Auburn began to wonder what was really going on. He didn't have long to wait before he found out. Douglas and Alfred threw him roughly into a lavishly decorated room. Scarlet curtains were draped over every wall. Tables with snow-white lace coverings were piled with expensive trinkets. The door of the closet was cracked open, and inside was clothing made of the very best fabric. Beside one of the walls, Ginger sat on a tall stool. She had been groomed to look like a princess. She was wearing a gown as fine as anything the Queen herself would wear. Auburn tried to rush to her, but he was grabbed and held back by the two thugs.   
  
"Ginger!" he called. "What happened to you??"  
  
Ginger slowly turned her head and looked down at her father. A look of disgust came over her prettily made up face. "You are a foolish, pathetic man," she said haughtily. "I refuse to have anything more to do with you!"  
  
Auburn blinked, not certain he had heard correctly. "What?"   
  
"Take him out of my sight!" Ginger chirped to Douglass and Alfred. "He is not worthy even to kneel in the same room with me!" She looked at Auburn, her eyes glinting with a strange fire. "The Professor is my caretaker now. I'm sure she shall do a far better job of it than you have!" With that she turned away, nose in the air, and studied herself in a mirror.  
  
Douglass and Alfred led the speechless Auburn out of the room. He stared down the hallway long after his daughter was out of sight.   



	6. Loyalty

Chapter 6  
Loyalty  
  
"Alright, you can move," said a scratchy voice from behind the curtain. Ginger, who had been sitting completely still in the pose her father had last seen her in, threw down the mirror and leaped out of the chair. She was about to make a rush for the door, but the voice interrupted again.   
  
"Not so fast, dearie." Ginger froze in place. "Don't worry, love. Your precious papa will be safe… for now." A young brown mouse with slanted eyes and ears too small for his head stepped out from behind the curtain. He was holding a shining dagger in his hand. Ginger turned and glared at him.  
  
"What are they going to do with my father?" she demanded.  
  
The mouse, who really looked a lot more like a weasel, shrugged. "Nothing for now, dearie. We still need him, after all." He put the dagger back into its holder on his belt. With the air of a prince, or merely a proud thief, he strutted to the child and put his arm around her, looming over her with his intimidating height. "Now," he hissed, "Why don't you just sit real nice on the bed and wait for the Professor to come fetch you?"  
  
When Ginger tried to pull away, the mouse only held her tighter. "I said real **nice**. Or did you not hear me?"  
  
"I heard you, I just don't care!" Ginger snapped. The mouse narrowed his eyes.  
  
"Very well, lovie, if that's the way you feel about it…" He lifted the girl up and threw her onto the bed. Ginger did a somersault and landed feet-up against the wall. She scrambled back onto her feet and stared coldly at the chuckling mouse.   
  
"My sincere apologies, Lady Hensaw," he crooned sarcastically as he flicked a switch on the wall. As soon as the switch was pulled, bars sprung from the floor, making the bed into a prison. Ginger threw herself against the bars.  
  
"I HATE YOU!!!" she shrieked. "I hate you, Bert Feesley!!!! I hate you more than I could ever hate anything else in the whole WORLD!!!! And when I find my daddy, I'm going to tell him what you did to me and he'll…"  
  
"He'll **what**, lovie?" Feesley grinned. "Run for the great master detective? Cry like a little girl?" He laughed cruelly. "Your daddy's no better than a traitorous slug." He turned and marched from the room.  
  
As soon as he was gone, Ginger tore off most of her fancy costume. When she managed to get her clothing down to a corset and a pair of frilly long underwear, she easily slipped out through the bars. The temptation to follow Feesley and give him a piece of her mind (and her fist) was terrible, but there were more pressing matters at hand. Without thinking the matter over twice, Ginger disappeared behind the same curtain Feesley had been hiding behind holding a dagger to her back.   
  
***  
  
Auburn was brought once again before his boss. Ratigan grinned down mockingly from his throne.   
  
"Poor Auburn. Has your lovely daughter gotten used to high society already?"   
  
Auburn cringed under the laughter of Douglas and Alfred, but said nothing.   
  
"Well," Ratigan continued, "I suppose you'll be taking your leave of this place now. That is what you wanted, isn't it? To go? You're free to."  
  
But to Ratigan's surprise, Auburn shook his head. "No," he said. "I never wanted to leave. I wanted Ginger to be happy." He sighed. "You've made her happy. I'm only glad I can still be near her, even if she can't stand the sight of me. I'll just… get back to work now." Auburn turned to go, but Ratigan snapped his fingers and the way was blocked once more by Douglas and Alfred. Auburn glanced over his shoulder.  
  
"You have proven yourself beyond my expectations, Auburn." Ratigan's eyes betrayed for once a spark of unclouded feeling, as if he almost regretted having to test his loyal assistant in such a way. But the spark lived only a moment. "You will not go unrewarded," he said, drawing himself up to his full height.   
  
Auburn nodded weakly and brushed past the two thugs. They growled softly, but they had no command from their boss, and so remained standing where they were. Ratigan watched Auburn dejectedly push the door open and shuffle out of the room.   
  
***  
  
The secret passageways that ran throughout every tunnel and building Ratigan called his lair were well-known to Ginger. She had spent many hours exploring them. Now that she had escaped from her prison, it was only a matter of running. Fortunately, running was one of Ginger's best talents.   
  
Her plan was to find her father. He would know what to do. Ginger decided to look for him in Ratigan's throne room, thinking that naturally Ratigan would want to witness firsthand what damage he had done to his servant. With her speed and knowledge of the secret tunnels, it was a matter of minutes before Ginger was approaching the entrance to the throne room. With only a little ways left to go, however, she quite literally ran into an unexpected obstacle.  
  
Two hands grabbed her from behind as she passed a branch in the tunnel. She struggled fiercely, but the hands held tight over her mouth, so she couldn't scream.   
  
"Hush!" the mouse snapped under his breath. "Ginger, be quiet! I'm here to help you!"  
  
Ginger twisted around in the dark, trying to free herself from her enemy's hold. He took his hands from her mouth so she could speak.   
  
"You'll never help me, you ugly rat!" she hissed.  
  
"Ginger, your father…"  
  
"What did you do with him?!" the girl demanded, finally freeing herself from the stranger's grip. She spun around and glared at him. In the darkness she could see only a tall, thin shadow. "Bert Feesley!" she gasped, backing away.  
  
"Who?" Basil said. "Oh it doesn't matter. Come on, we've got to get you out of this place!"  
  
"NO! My father is still here, and I'm going to find him!" She turned and started running. Basil set off in pursuit, but she was fast and got ahead of him quickly.   
  
"Ginger!" Basil called after her. "Your father doesn't want you to live his life!" But by the time he got the words out, she was out of sight. Basil snarled a curse under his breath and scuttled back the way he had come.  
  
Meanwhile, Ginger kept running as fast as she could. It was not until she reached a dead end that she realized she was lost. Frightened and alone, she tried to go back and retrace her steps. She only succeeded in hitting another dead end.   
  
"Don't panic," she said to herself. "At least I got away…" She sat down in the tunnel and leaned against the wall. A candle against the wall burned above her head, casting a dim yellow light over the stone walls. The words of the strange mouse still echoed in her ears. 'Your father doesn't want you!' he had yelled. Ginger took a deep breath to calm herself.  
  
"That can't be true," she murmured. "Why would he not want me… unless… unless he thought I meant all that stuff Bert Feesley made me say! Oh no!!" Her wide hazel eyes filled with tears. "Well there's no reason for me to find my way back now, is there? I'll just stay lost and make everybody the happier for it!"   
  
Ginger curled up against the dank wall, surrendering herself to her own misery. But she wasn't there long before yet another strange voice came to her through the halls.   
  
"Ginger, get up luv."   
  
"Go away!" Ginger sobbed. "I'm not coming back!"  
  
"Come on, sweetie, your father's waiting for you."  
  
"No he isn't! He doesn't want me anymore! I'm a horrible, horrible person, just like Bert Feesley and the Professor!" She curled up tighter, clutching her tail. "Leave me alone!"  
  
But the voice persisted. The woman, for it was a woman's voice, gave a bubbly, far-away laugh and said, "Your father loves you, Ginger. He loves you more than anything in the world. That's why he had Basil bring you away from here. He wants you to be happy." Ginger felt a soft hand on her shoulder. She looked around and found herself staring at what might have been a ghostly reflection of her own face, pale as chalk but with the same half-smile and round hazel eyes.   
  
"Who are you?" Ginger asked shakily.   
  
"My name is Argentina," said the woman. "I'm a… friend of your father. Now dry your eyes and follow me. Your father misses you."  
  
The white mouse reached out and took Ginger's hands. She playfully lifted the child high above the ground and swung her forward. Ginger giggled with delight.  
  
"I like you, Argentina," she said. "Will you come and be my mother?"  
  
The white mouse swished her tail, and Ginger noticed the beautiful tuft of long white fur at the end of it. She smiled, but an expression of pain came across the woman's face.   
  
"I cannot stay with you long," she said softly. "I have… pressing business. Elsewhere. Far away."   
  
"Will you come back?" Ginger asked anxiously.  
  
"I might, little one. I might."   
  
Ginger smiled. "Oh good." She took the woman's hand and let her lead the way.  



	7. Back to the Start

Chapter 7  
Back to the Start  
  
Basil stepped into the courtyard outside Ratigan's lair. He was surprised to see Auburn sitting against the wall with his head bowed. Concerned, Basil ran to him.  
  
"What happened?" he asked. "Why isn't Ginger with you?"   
  
Auburn sighed. "She doesn't want me," he whispered. "She's got Ratigan now."  
  
"What?!"  
  
"Ratigan took her and gave her things fit for a queen to wear. She won't come back. She told me so. She looked into my eyes and told me I wasn't good enough for her."   
  
"But he can't…"  
  
"Oh he can. I assure you, he can." Auburn glared at Basil. "She's gone. That's it. You can go home now. You're better off there anyway."  
  
"I can't go until she's safe."  
  
"Don't you understand? She is safe! She's safe and happy with her new father. Your job is done. I don't have to betray my boss and you don't have to risk your neck. I can still be near my daughter and everyone-is-happy. Got it? He has her in a big room with red curtains and lace bed sheets. That's what I wanted for her. She's happy. I'm happy. We can all go one with our lives without…"  
  
"Will you shut up!!" Basil snapped. Auburn looked at him, his eyes filled with tears he refused to let go.  
  
"She's **fine**," he insisted.  
  
"No she isn't, Auburn. I just saw her running through the secret tunnels wearing nothing but fancy undergarments. I would have had her here but she thought I was someone called Bert Feesley and ran off looking for you!"  
  
Auburn leaned back against the wall. "So… the whole thing… was just a big act?"  
  
Basil nodded. "Whatever she did it must have been an act. I assure you, dear fellow, she loves you more than anybody else in the world."   
  
A faint, sad smile crept into Auburn's expression. He turned his face to the starlit sky as tears trickled down his cheeks. His eyes were closed. Basil tilted his head slightly, wondering, for it seemed the mouse might have been reading a silent prayer written in blood somewhere within the abyss of his very soul. Finally, Auburn spoke once more, though his voice was only a strangled whisper.   
  
"Then… we have to find her."  
  
"Indeed. And our best bet would be to start in the tunnels where I saw her last."  
  
Auburn nodded, wiping his tears away with the sleeve of his jacket. He opened his mouth as if to say something more, but he was interrupted by the cry of a child's voice.  
  
"DADDY!" Ginger yelled. "Daddy, I'm here! I love you!!"  
  
Ginger ran into Auburn's arms, and the two held each other in a tight embrace.  
  
"I didn't mean what I said, dad!" Ginger insisted, starting to cry. "Bert Feesley made me say it! He had a knife to me! Please, don't be angry… I love you, daddy!!!"   
  
"Shh… that's all right, Ginger. Don't cry now, love. I know you didn't mean it. Basil told me everything."  
  
"Then you're not mad at me?" Ginger looked up hopefully into her father's cloudy eyes.  
  
"Not a bit, Ginger." He lifted the girl onto his lap. "How did you get here, anyway?"  
  
"A beautiful lady showed me!" Ginger said excitedly. "A beautiful lady with fur the color of the moon! She had long fur on her tail, like me!"  
  
"Was she a lady from the pub?" Basil asked. "What would a waitress know about Ratigan's secret tunnels?"  
  
But Ginger shook her head. "No, she said she was one of daddy's friends. And you know what, dad? She knows our song!"  
  
Auburn's eyes widened. "It… it couldn't be…" he murmured. "Who is it, Auburn?" Basil coaxed.   
  
Auburn shook his head. "No, it couldn't be her. She's been dead since Ginger was a month old, if that." He winced, as if the memory still stood out sharply in his memory. "It must have been a new waitress from the pub, then. She might have heard me singing, or you, Ginger."  
  
Again Ginger shook her head. "NO, she didn't! She said she wrote the song!! She sang me another verse, one you never taught me."  
  
"Do you remember how it goes?"  
  
Ginger furrowed her brow. "I think I could remember a bit…"  
  
Just as she was about to begin singing, a net fell on the three of them from above. They turned to see Ratigan and Feesley grinning down at them.   
  
"What a wonderful job you've done at capturing my enemy for me, Auburn!" Ratigan exclaimed. "It's too bad you had to lie to me before."  
  
"B-but boss, I…"  
  
"No need to explain, Auburn. I understand the bond between a parent and a child." His eyes glinted with a hellish light as he grinned down at his captors. "I remember well how that beautiful woman protested." He leaned down close to Auburn, who shrank back in fear. "Oh, she was a feisty one, she was! Too bad she wasn't smart enough to do as I ordered."  
  
Auburn fought to keep back the rage that threatened to burst forth. He tightened his grip on Ginger and growled through clenched teeth, "What will you do to us?"  
  
Ratigan chuckled. "Oh you **do** amuse me so, Auburn! Let me see… you brought me Basil. That's one good thing. But you also lied to me. Not a good thing." He took a small brass bell out of his pocket and played with the shining ringer inside it. "But then, you also have remained loyal to me despite my little… heh… game. There's two good things." Ratigan put the bell back into his pocket. "You've purchased your freedom with false wisdom. That can't last long with you, Auburn. Feesley, let them out."  
  
Bert Feesley lifted part of the net to let Auburn and Ginger out. Basil, however, was caught. Ratigan looked thoughtfully at him.  
  
"Well, Auburn, my faithful friend, what do you suppose should be done with this… fiend?"  
  
Feesley piped up, "Feed him to the cat, gov'ner!"  
  
Ratigan whirled around. "Did I ask you?!" he demanded. Startled, Feesley shook his head. "Good! Do not answer me unless I speak to you! Now, Auburn…"  
  
Auburn looked at Basil. His dark eyes narrowed, then he looked away. "I don't care what you do with him, boss," he said, scooping Ginger into his arms. "Alive or dead, he's no use to us, is he? Now I'm going to take my daughter home, sir."  
  
"Oh no! A decision first, Auburn! I insist!" Ratigan stood in front of the two mice, blocking their exit. Auburn sighed wearily.  
  
"Lock him up, then. Let him suffer before he dies the failure that he is." Auburn met Basil's eyes with an icy glare before he turned to go.  
  
Ratigan stepped aside to let them pass. "Well said, my faithful student. Well said indeed."   



	8. The Prayer

  
  
Chapter 8  
The Prayer  
  
As the dawn crept over the horizon, Auburn and Ginger crept through the tunnels to their home. They arrived just as the unseen sun touched the rooftops over the rest of London.  
  
"Alright, Ginger, off to bed now. Go on." Auburn shooed Ginger into her room and followed to tuck her in. Ginger leaped into her "bed," which was actually a mattress mounted on bricks.   
  
"Daddy, will you sing to me?"  
  
"Of course, love. What song do you want?"  
  
"Our song. I want you to sing the verse that lady taught me."  
  
Auburn frowned. "Are you sure she taught you another verse?"  
  
Ginger nodded. "Yes, dad, very sure. It starts off with… um… something about growing…"  
  
Auburn put his finger to his daughter's lips to quiet her. "I'll sing it from the beginning and you tell me if I do it right, okay?"  
  
Ginger nodded. Auburn began the song, but by the time he got to the third verse, Ginger was fast asleep. Auburn kissed her forehead and went to his own room.   
  
A cool breeze blew past his ears when he entered, and for a moment he thought he smelled roses. The sound of distant wind chimes drifted through the rooms like mist.  
  
"Tina?" Auburn whispered, half expecting a reply. The sound was not repeated. Auburn sighed. "One always hopes," he said sadly to himself before flopping down onto his bed. As he lay there in the darkness, he was troubled by something. Finally, hesitantly, he got up again and knelt on the floor, his fingers weaved together in front of him. Foggy recollections of a long-past childhood came to him as he tried to recall the prayer his parents taught him.  
  
"Our father who reigns above, hallowed be thy name," he muttered in a low, unsure voice. "Thy will be done… on earth… Give us this day… um… Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those… those who…" He paused, listening with his eyes squeezed shut as if the darkness of his thoughts might remind him of the words. But the prayer was lost somewhere in memories too far back for him to hold on to. He took a deep breath and began again.  
  
"I realize I haven't prayed for a long time, God. An' I know… that what I do isn't exactly according to your laws… But I need to ask you for a favor. It isn't for me, of course. I'm not deserving of any favors. But God, I gotta ask you for something for my daughter, Ginger. I… I don't want her to grow up to be what I am. If you could find some time for her, God, I'd be grateful if you'd help me get her out of here. Please, God… I don't ask for much. She's more to me than anything. I'd die for her… you know it. Please…"  
  
Again the sound of wind chimes blew past him in a soft breeze. He raised his eyes in wonder. There, beside the door, was Argentina. She was dressed in a long white gown, but was otherwise exactly as he remembered her. She smiled gently down to him.  
  
"Auburn… my one true love," she said. Her voice sounded like a beautiful echo. Auburn gasped, hardly believing his own senses.   
  
"T-Tina," he stammered. "Is it… but it can't be…"  
  
"But it is, my love." She walked to him, her feet never touching the ground, and knelt in front of him. Her eyes glowed with all their old wisdom and promise, but the promise was a false one. Auburn fell forward into her arms, embracing her.  
  
"I miss you so much." Tears of joy and loss poured down his cheeks.   
  
"I miss you too." Argentina held him close, and though she did not weep, her voice was enough to reveal that she wanted to. "But do not be too sad, my love. I have come to give you happy news." She brushed his tears away with the tuft on her tail.   
  
"What is it?" Auburn sniffed.  
  
"I've come to tell you that Ginger will be alright. You've made her a good father. Better than I had dared to hope for."  
  
"Have I? It's hard…"  
  
"I know. But you are strong. Deep inside you, Auburn, you are different than the others who dwell beside us in this pit of shame. What may be your undoing down here has been Ginger's saving grace."  
  
"What will happen to her?" Auburn glanced at the door, but drew his gaze quickly back to Argentina.   
  
"She will leave this place on her own, and make her own life outside the city."  
  
"When will she leave?"   
  
"Soon. Very soon."  
  
"But…"  
  
Argentina raised her hand to quiet him. "It will be hard for you. For both of you. But I will watch her, guide her, and guard her. You may never speak to her again, but you will know she is well."  
  
"How?"   
  
"You will know. Trust, my love. Now I must go." She stood. Auburn leaped to his feet and grabbed her hands.  
  
"Don't leave me again!" he pleaded tearfully. "I couldn't stand to loose you and Ginger. Please don't leave me!"  
  
"It isn't forever, Auburn. No good-bye is forever. Now kiss me one last time. Remember, we shall meet again."  
  
Auburn pressed his mouth to hers. They stood in the darkness for a long time together, trying to make the moment last longer for fear of what lay in store when it was over. But at last, they had to part. Argentina backed away slowly. Auburn stretched his hands out to her. "Don't leave me, Tina," he mouthed silently. But her beautiful, pale shape faded once more into the night and she was gone.  
  
Auburn longed to fall to his knees and weep, to cry to the heavens of the injustice of life. But he remembered Argentina's warning, and ran to Ginger's room.  
  
Ginger's bed was empty. The music box, which Basil had returned earlier, was gone again. The window to the street hung open. Auburn leaped over Ginger's bed and peered out onto the empty street.  
  
"GINGER!" he called. "GINGER!!!"   
  
There was no answer. Auburn hadn't really expected one. She was gone. Auburn sat on the windowsill and began to sing his final farewell.   
  
  
Though you grow away,  
No matter how you change, I'll know you  
And when you tire of life alone,  
There will always be one sure way back home…  
You just turn on the quiet,  
And you close your eyes,  
And listen inside.  
  
I'll be there to sing to you.  
I promise you, I promise to  
Comfort you and sing to you.  
Darling I'll be there  
Any time and anywhere.  
Ginger, I'll be there just for you.  
  
…end…  



End file.
